Apparatus for coating food products



D. R. BAILEY APPARATUS FOR COATING- FOOD PRODUCTS Filed Aug. 19.. 1-924 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 o I W0 1 4 v 1 III!!!VIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII III I III r INVENTOR ATTORNEY o. R. BQJLEY' APPARATUS FOR coA'rme FOOD rndnuc'rs I a 1 Filed Aug. :19. .1924 2 Sheets-Shut 2 QRNEY Patented Oct. 6, 1925,

' iirrnnii'i us Fort comqmd roun"manners;

Beiitw known that I, ,DAV'ID' :iBAIIiEY; a citizenlofrthe Unitedsttes, i'esidingwat Sucrameiitofin the-county of Sacramento find State of aalifoi'niag have invented cer tain newiuid useful' In'mroxiements in A1); pajmtns'for: Goaiting Foods Productsg er Which 'thefollowing' is cl specification! Y The present-invention relates to an 2.15-

pardtus through which food pi'dductssn'ch as net meats; for example, almonds, or po= 'tfifo oliips, iire conveyed, and Wliei'einthey receive it coating for assisting salt org-rant"- :lar material eppliedthefeon to adhere w thereto; I

-' It has rhen discovered that if theTgra-nu'lar materiel epp'liedtbaim'onds and ether nut meets or potetoehips is caused to adhere, that a considerable saving in thealnou-nt of lgranii'lar nmterial einployed "ishiide, Hue

to the r'stt that the granular materialwhen "once ieippil'ied is noteasily dispiaced therefrom audit hasbeento" accomplish this end that thepresentapp kratus has been designed. The 'principu1 objectof the invention is 'tpgprevide an epptmtus wherein the product to be treated is 'ccnveyedina continiions stream flow through spray of miiterial directed thereon to adhere theretmhreferzibly liquid,'end wherein the-excess liquid applied dining the subjection to the spraying aet'ien drains from the material; i's'reheatedg-re circulated I end again discharged onto other material in spray formation; a further fleet to provide valve controlled spray pipes'diseherg'ing on' the' material as conve ea whereby greater or 'iesser amount at adhesive may'be'epplied to the material conveyed; another object istq rovide an a paratus adapted for the "spraying of blanched and coclidiiiit flieetswith eeottf ing of vegetable adhesive which assist 1 in inei-nteini-ng the si hifieqiififily' applied alt adhering bethes rieee'ehere f. r f With thedjfbbfiej iiitionedj and otheffihinns in View; the invention bfi'sistiithe nm'el construction and combination of perts hereinafter described;ilhistigiwd t e; ac-

size and minor details of construction-Within the seopeioff the claims may be resorted to without departing; from the spiritror sacri fi-cing any of the advantages of the invention; I ."lomere .fmillycoinprehend the invention; reference is directed to-the accompanying drawings iorining a pm ofthisapplication andwherein v Fig. 1 'isf-avview in vertic'fil longitudinal section of the'preferred embediinentcfniy imamus; -i Figlfli'sa transverse vertical .sectiontwken on line 22 of Fig; '1 Viewed dii ec- 'tion' er the arrow. v w

Fig 3 is awi'ew in detailed plan of a por- 'tion' of the mesh'conveydr: Fig; 4 is *a'vieW in top bliin of -the at-Triparatus' wirith the flfiid hedting zindfcirculating boiler connected therewith. 1 =-'Fi g.s5 is a; vieWin d'agmmmaxiq plan,

disciosir'lg the preferred layoiit of the apparatus; i

Fig. i6 is a detail; longitndinalysectional 'v-iew'of a portion of one ofthe spray pipes. :In the dr'et'wing's wherein like bh'aractei'is of reference designate col-respending parts, theinnmeral "1 indicates 1 suitaible chamber :sii'bstantially rectangular in plan and eonsistin g fof'ehodiy 'port-ion' 2'suppoited by legs'fdand a removable cov'r portion' i'upwarm from which extends a; stack orveiit The apparatus is provided in'zthe '1'e inoi abflecover t with a, meterial feed opening'finnd a material discharge opening 7, the letter commilnicatiiig with the discharge chute -8.' Asubs'tantiwlly horizontelly down- Whrdiy' curved will-l '9 affords a 'silpport'idr the prodiict delivered through the opening 6 by the endless conveyor 10 or other suiteh'le meansand a-wa'l l 11 disposed trans- :versely oftheehainber 1 at a "point inwardly the opening '6 provides a stop wall for the lneterial; the' wwll 1 1 being 'disp'o'se d singulfirly'to the Weill *Q and the ftivo being drnangd with 'their adjaeent ends in 'spaeed renew whereby' the walls" 9 and ii 'prov'ide d stoirfigehbpgef '12 formed with in discharge threat 13.: I 'chimli'r 1 and extending from "a point comifieneing at the et lllbfthe slate 11*"2L1id termioi -Winch assessed isiiosd utrzinsverselygi of' the tally in the chamber, the rear end of which is inclined upwardly as at 15 to extend a short distance at an upward inclination.

Within the chamber are disposed. the transverse rotatably mounted shafts 16 carrying the respective conveyor mounting and operating rollers 17, one being positioned beneath the plate 9 and the other adjacent the center of the discharge opening 7. Operating over the conveyor supporting rollers 17 is an endless conveyor 18 preferably of open mesh wire cloth, the strands of which intersect as at 19. The rollers 17 divide the conveyor into upper and lower flights A and B and the outer surface of the conveyor carries at spaced points thereon the transversely disposed angle irons 20. The portions 21 of the respective angle irons are disposed at right angles to the outer face of the conveyor, affording between adjacent irons pockets G disposed throughout the entire area of the conveyor. The side walls of the chamber 1 mount suitable tracks 22 disposed beneath the conveyor guide plate 14 and extending in a curved path following substantially the curvature of the plate '9 and plate 14 between conveyor rolls 17. These guide tracks preclude undue sagging of the upper flight A of the conveyor in its movement from the feed to the discharge end of the apparatus. Fulcrumed on a horizontal axis 23 at a point between one of the rollers 17 and the under surface of the plate 9 are the arms 24 carrying at their free ends a plate 25 serving as a gate to control the passage of material onto the conveyor through the throat 13. It will be observed that the portions 21 of the angle irons 20 in passing beneath the arms 24, act on the same to cause an upward movement of the plate 25 to permit an intermittent flow of material onto the conveyor 18 through the throat 13. It will be observed that the angle irons 20 are positioned a sufficient distance apart on the conveyor to admit of the arms 24 dropping by gravity to move the plate 25 from closed position in the throat prior to the arms being again raised to move the plate into closed position in the throat.

Power is applied to the shaft 16 adjacent the discharge opening 7 to operate the conveyor in the direction of the arrow and it will be observed that as the conveyor moves toward the discharge opening of the apparatus that successive charges of material will be admitted into successive pockets G by the timed opening and closing of the throat 13. The conveyor in its movement with the product to be treated contained within the pockets, passes beneath the guide plate 14 with the free edges of the portions 21 of the angle irons 20 in contact with the under surface of the plate 14, which forms a closure for the otherwise open tops of the pockets and which plate also controls the path of travel of the upper flight of the conveyor. The fluid such as gum arabic for spraying onto the conveyed material is preferably ap- V plied to the continuous stream of nut meats by being discharged through the spray nozzles 26 of spray pipes 26 disposed transversely across the upper flight A of the conveyor at a point above the end 15 of plate 14. Spray pipes connect through valve controlled couplings with a circulating pipe 29, and a pipe 28 leads from the chamber to return the coating material collecting therein, as the excess drains from the nuts to a hereinafter described boiler for reheating and recirculating the same. The gum arabic is maintained at the desired temperature by a suitable boiler 27 connected with the chain'- her through the circulating pipes 28 and 29, which are in turn connected in advance of the boiler through a valve controlled pipe 30. Fuel is supplied to the boiler-through the pipe 31 and its flow to control the tem perature of the boiler is regulated by a thermostatic valve 32, the operationof which is governed by the temperature of the fluid in the return pipe 28 at a point near the boiler 27. With the pipe 29 is connected througha valve controlled pipe 33 a fluid storage reservoir 34 from which fluid is adapted to be admitted into a circulating system as the same evaporates or is absorbed by the food under treatment.

It will be observed that the application of gum arabic, a'vegetable adhesive to thesurface of foods. to assist in maintaining a granular coating thereto, does not in any manner render the food injurious to human consumption, but on the other hand provides a sealing medium for the food which assists in retaining the food value within the article, prevents evaporation and deters deterioration.

In addition to the present apparatus it is believed new to apply by spraying onto the surface of nut meats and the like a vegetable non-injurious coating in the form of an adhesive which will assist in retaining salt or other granular particles of material to the surface of the food when applied thereto, thus affording a saving in the amount of granular material employed, occasioned bv the fact that the material when. once .applied is retained to the surface of the article by the adhesive.

I claim:

1. The method of retaining a granular substance to the surface of nut meats and the like, which consists in first coating the 3. The method of retaining a granular sure gum arabic in a heated condition onto substance on the surface of nut meats and the material as the same is maintained in the like which consists in first spraying onto motion and permitting the excess to drain I. the surface of the material hot gum arabic. therefrom.

5 4. The method of ap lying .an adhesive In testimony whereof I have signed my medium to the surface 0? nut meats and the name to this specification. like, which consists in spraying under pres- DAVID R. BAILEY. 

